And then there were 10… After last week’s farewell to Darby Walker, The Voice is finally down to a rather strong final 10 competitors for the current season crown. If you’re thinking it’s time for some divine intervention for the remaining vocalists, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Let’s take a look at how the night went down.
5. Billy Gilman, “Anyway” (Team Adam)
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!As odd as it may be to see him this far down, it speaks to how big a night it was for most of the vocalists on the show that  Billy Gilman barely makes the Top 5 for the night. The season-long co-favorite was in the unenviable position of opening the show, but he delivered a knockout punch with a cover of Martina McBride’s “Anyway.” The uplifting song and orchestral backing worked well with Billy’s powerful voice, and Blake Shelton  praised the singer for going back to the country well even though it’s not his long-term goal.
4. Ali Caldwell, “Without You” (Team Miley)
Ali Caldwell is angling for an appearance on finals nights, and is inching into the conversation to win it all. On this night, she did nothing to discourage that talk by taking on the Harry Nilsson classic “Without You” during her show-closing performance. It was an elegant and powerful performance that should ensure her safety.
3. Christian Cuevas, “Million Reasons” (Team Alicia)
Christian Cuevas could be the dark horse pick this season. The Team Alicia singer has continued to wow week after week, and this week he took what could have been a forgettable performance of Lady Gaga’s “Million Reasons” and turned it into one of the night’s top moments. The track went from being a solid performance to one that really sold itself when the vocalist let the emotion of the track take over, pulling the audience in and making fans of many.
2. We McDonald, “God Bless the Child” (Team Alicia)
Are you kidding me? We McDonald‘s talent shows no bounds, as she switched things up with the Billie Holliday classic, “God Bless the Child.” With a little vote of confidence from coach Alicia Keys, We transformed herself onstage, delivering the song with a swagger heretofore unseen mixed with pure soul and even an operatic song closing. We continues to impress and while this was not her best performance, it was her riskiest one yet.
- Sundance Head, “Me and Jesus” (Team Blake)
Sundance Head was a surprise leader when the download totals came in last week, and he’s in line to lead all vocalists with his unique song choice and performance of the Tom T. Hall country classic, “Me and Jesus.” With a little suggestion from Coach Blake, Sundance delivered the night’s top performance, starting the song off with a slow open, then picking it up with rapid fire bluegrass and a gospel-style backing choir. The end result was an expertly arranged edition of a familiar country favorite delivered with aplomb by Head.
While those five artists should coast to the next round with ease, there are a few acts that could be in danger of going home Tuesday night. Let’s get this out of the way — though not in the Top 5, Brendan Fletcher‘s rendition of Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors” and Austin Allsup‘s re-arranged cover of John Waite’s “Missing You” should advance both artists with few issues. Meanwhile, Aaron Gibson‘s bouncy and bluesy arrangement of Elton John’s “Rocket Man” was an interesting cover that mostly worked well, but given his bottom two status in recent weeks, it’s not hard to imagine him back there again.
That leaves us with Adam Levine‘s country vocalist Josh Gallagher, who delivered an upbeat and solid take on Tim McGraw’s “Real Good Man,” but could use something outside of the genre to shake things up. And Blake Shelton’s vocalist, Courtney Harrell, performing Cher’s “Turn Back Time” as a throwback to the ’80s. Harrell was a little shaky vocally, but had over-the-top power at times, plenty of stage presence and a one of the night’s fiercest looks (along with a Team Blake voting block) that could help keep her around.
Going into Tuesday night, we feel pretty solid about seven of the 10 performing artists, with Aaron Gibson, Josh Gallagher and Courtney Harrell being left to sweat it out. But some of the voting results have surprised in recent weeks, so tune in Tuesday at 8PM ET/PT on NBC to see who moves forward.
